


we were wrong to think we had moved on

by icantcountthereasonsishouldstay



Category: How I Met Your Mother
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Fluff and Angst, the one good thing about the finale is that they didnt actually show robin and ted get back together, theres actually not that much lily/marshall but it is there
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-28
Updated: 2017-06-03
Packaged: 2018-05-23 17:09:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 4,386
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6123691
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/icantcountthereasonsishouldstay/pseuds/icantcountthereasonsishouldstay
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After Ted's kids encourage him to go after Robin, he does, but they both realize that they still wouldn't work out. Ted hasn't moved on from Tracy, and Robin's still in love with Barney.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This starts literally right where the finale ends and goes from there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No one can tell me it's canon that Ted and Robin got back together because we never actually saw it happen. Also, I am ride or die for Swarkles.

Ted stood outside the window with the blue french horn held high. Robin looked out the window and chuckled.

“Just like old times,” she thought to herself, but even she had to admit she wasn't sure if she wanted to go down this road again.

True, they were older and had both accomplished what they wanted to do that had caused issues in their past relationships, but she still wasn't sure if this was what she wanted. She let Ted up anyway, and they ended up talking for a few hours.

Eventually, Ted had to ask the question Robin had been dreading.

“It's not gonna happen, is it?”

Robin sighed and gave him her answer.

“No, it’s not.”

Ted looked down and asked, “It's Barney, isn't it?”

Robin took a deep breath.

“It always has been. We didn't get divorced because we didn’t love each other. We got divorced because we let my job get in the way. I never stopped loving him, just like you haven't stopped loving Tracy,” she replied.

Ted looked up, confused.

“What does Tracy have to do with this?” he asked.

“Oh come on, Ted. You still haven’t moved on yet, and I think that's why your feelings for me resurfaced. Tracy and I were almost complete opposites when it came to what we wanted in a relationship. I think you wanted to be someone as different from Tracy as possible, so it would be easier for you to move on, but Ted, this isn't the right way to do it. Ted, you need to let the past go. You need to let go of both of us. You won't find a good relationship until you do.”

“You've always known me pretty well. So, what about you? Are you still trying to let go of Barney, or are you considering trying to get him back?”

Robin took a deep breath and sighed.

“Honestly? I don’t know. I still love him, but I don’t know if he would even want me back. I mean, you saw how easy it was for him to go back to sleeping with anything that moved. And now he has a kid! I don’t want to get between him and the mom either. It just doesn’t seem like a good idea.”

“Robin, Barney went back to his old ways as a way to cope. We even asked him about it when we saw him going after a couple girls half his age. Do you wanna know what he said? He said, ‘Robin’s awesome, and if I couldn’t do it with her, then I’m not going to be able to’. You thought he was moving on, but he was just coping. As for the mom, she hates Barney. HATES him. He told her he was a Norwegian prince who was dying of a disease that only having sex could cure and that he had to live long enough to keep a world peace-keeping summit from falling apart and leading to nuclear war. I would hate him too. The only reason she even talks to him is because they have joint custody of their kid.”

Robin couldn’t help but laughing.

“Oh god, I hope the kid gets Barney’s intelligence. It never stops being amazing how stupid some women can be.”

Suddenly, she stopped laughing.

“Ted?”

“Yeah, Robin?”

“Do you think I should try to get him back?”

Ted sighed and thought about it for a few minutes.

“Yeah, I do. You both still love each other, and you’re not traveling that much anymore. I think you two could make it work.”

“I’ll go to his apartment tomorrow. Thanks, Ted.”

“You’re welcome, Robin.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to add Lily and Robin's friendship into this, and if there's Lily, there's gotta be Marshall. Also, I don't think Robin would just take Ted's word for it about Barney.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone wants to be my Beta, just let me know

Before going to Barney’s apartment, Robin stopped by Marshall and Lily’s. She knew Ted wouldn’t purposely give her bad advice, but she just wanted a second opinion to make sure she was doing the right thing. She had called Lily ahead of time, so she just walked right in when she got there. Of course, Lily was waiting on the couch for her. Robin hadn’t been around much since the divorce, so she didn’t really know what to say.

“Hey, Lily. How are you doing?”

Lily looked her dead in the eye.

“Where’s the poop, Robin?”

“Damn it Lily, how do you do that?”

“Just answer the question, Robin.”

Robin sighed and sat down next to her.

“I’m thinking about trying to get back together with Barney. Ted thinks I should, but he always wants to believe in love, even when he shouldn’t. What do you think Lily? Should I try to get Barney back?”

“Robin, you should totally try. You both were so much happier than you are now, he’s obviously still in love with you, and that also means there’s no chance he’ll go back to being gross and creepy. Everybody wins.”

“I thought his kid snapped him out of his creepy phase.”

“Maybe for now. You gotta remember she’s here because of his creepy phase. When he realizes that, maybe he’ll think sleeping with any drunk idiot with big boobs is actually a good thing since he doesn’t have you anymore.”

“You really believe he still loves me?”

“Yeah, it’s so obvious. Sometimes, he’ll start talking about you and get this look on his face that reminds me of the way Marshall looked at me when we got married.”

“And this has nothing to do with the bet you made with Marshall about me and Ted not ending up together?”

“Robin, I can still win the bet whether or not you end up with Barney. As long as it’s not with Ted, I’m good. If one thing’s become clear over the time I’ve known you, it’s that you and Ted are not a good match. So, encouraging you to be with Barney is just me being a good friend.”

“Thanks, Lily.”

Robin sighed and started tapping her fingers on her leg. She knew she wanted to get Barney back, but she wasn’t ready to go over there yet.

“Hey, Lil? Can we just hang out for a while before I go over there?”

“Yeah, of course, Robin.”

Lily and Robin started talking, and about an hour later Marshall walked in.

“Hey, babe. Hey Robin.”

Lily got up and kissed Marshall.

“Hey, baby.”

Robin looked over at him from the couch.

“Hey, Marshall.”

Marshall walked past Lily and stood in front of the couch.

“So, Robin, I know you’re thinking about getting Barney back, but is that really the best idea? Barney isn’t exactly known for being a gentleman towards women, like, oh I don’t know, Ted, for instance.”

Robin looked over at Lily.

“Lily, we were talking the whole time. When did you have time to tell Marshall?”

Lily looked down guiltily.

“When you went to the bathroom.”

Robin directed her attention back to Marshall.

“Ted and I aren’t gonna happen, Marshall. Just give up, and give Lily the money.”

Marshall pulled out his wallet and gave Lily the money.

“I just wanted to see if there was any chance left for Ted. So, when are you going over to Barney’s?”

Robin looked at her phone and checked the time.

“Well, it’s only five, so I guess I’ll go over there now. Ted said the mom has the kid this weekend, so that makes things a little easier.”

As Marshall was putting his wallet away, he turned to Robin and said, “Robin, in all seriousness, Barney really does love you. I think he’ll take you back in a heartbeat.”

Robin sighed but couldn’t stop a small smile from creeping onto her face.

“Thanks, Marshall.”

Robin turned back to Lily who hugged her tightly for a few seconds.

“I think you’ll both be happier together.”

“Thanks, Lily,” Robin replied.

“What are you still doing here? Go get your man back!”

Robin smiled at Lily, and, after saying goodbye to both Lily and Marshall, she headed to Barney’s apartment. After she was gone, Lily and Marshall both felt better. They had both known for a while that Barney and Robin still had feelings for each other. They were just waiting until Barney and Robin realized that too, and now their waiting was over.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter is completely centered around Barney and Robin, I promise.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Barney and Robin finally talk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's time for Swarkles!!!!!!!

Robin didn’t start having second thoughts until she was in front of Barney’s door. She was debating whether or not just to give up when Barney opened the door. 

“Robin.”

He stared at her for a few seconds, not believing what he was seeing. After snapping back to reality, he asked the question Robin knew was coming.

“Wh-what are you doing here?” he stammered, not sure he wanted to know the answer.

Robin took a deep breath and sighed.

“I wanted to talk to you about a couple things. Is it okay if I come in for a few minutes or are you busy?”

“Um, yeah. Yeah, sure. Come in. What I was doing can wait a few minutes.”

Barney gestured for her to come in, and she went to sit on the couch. His apartment hadn’t changed at all, except for the children’s toys scattered all around. Barney shut the door and sat on the other end of the couch. They sat in silence for a few minutes, until Barney found the courage to break it. 

“So, what’s up?”

Robin sighed and tried to find the courage to say what she had wanted to for the past 14 years.

“Well, Barney, when we got divorced, it wasn’t because we stopped loving each other. We just let my job get in the way. Now, I don’t move around very much, and to be completely honest, I haven’t stopped loving you, and for a while I wondered if you felt the same way. But when I saw you hitting on those girls and having one night stands, it hurt, and I couldn’t be around you. I decided it was best to just give up. I didn’t realize how badly I wanted you back until Ted showed up at my apartment with the smurf penis. We talked for a while, but the whole time, I just kept wishing that it had been you instead. Then Ted told me that you still loved me, and the next day I talked to Lily and Marshall and they said the same thing so I thought I would come over and, well, I don’t know...maybe, see if we could try again? If you want?”

Barney stared at her, completely shocked. He imagined getting back together with Robin ever since they got divorced. He’d tried to move on, and he almost managed to convince himself he actually was happy for three years. Then, he found out number 31 was pregnant, and everything changed. While he was thinking, he realized he hadn’t responded to Robin and that she was waiting nervously for him to say something. Barney got down on one knee and took her wedding ring out of his jacket.

“I never stopped loving you, even though I tried so hard to convince myself to move on. I almost convinced myself that I did, but then Ellie was born. When I looked at my baby, I couldn’t help but wish that if I had to accidentally get a girl pregnant, why couldn’t it be someone I cared about like you. I know you can’t have kids, and I’m not trying to throw that in your face, but it made me realize I want you in my life more than anything. I want you back so badly. Robin Scherbatsky, will you marry me...again?”

It was Robin’s turn to be shocked. She hadn’t fully believed Ted, Lily, and Marshall, but never in her wildest dreams did she expect Barney to still have her ring.

“You...you kept that? After all these years? Barney, oh my God.”

“Yeah, selling meant it was really over, but I tried to convince myself keeping it would help pick up chicks. The ‘my wife died, and I couldn’t even think about giving up my wedding ring or moving on until I met you’ play works like every time. I never actually used the ring for that one though. Too many memories.”

Barney paused and took a deep breath.

“You still haven’t answered my question. Do you want to get remarried?”

“Oh, right-sorry, yes. Yes, I want to get remarried-”

Robin barely got the last word out before Barney was on the couch kissing her. After a minute, Robin pulled away.

“Hey, Barney? Why don’t you put the ring on my finger before you lose it?”

Barney realized that he’d forgotten to give her back the ring. 

He slid it on her finger, and asked, “So, you want to move this to the bedroom?”

Robin smiled wider than she ever had in the past 14 years.

“Oh God, yes.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Idk exactly where the next chapter's going but I have some ideas.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, finally updating (after what feels like years). Sorry it's been so long, lack of motivation and school kinda killed my writing, but here's another chapter!

When Barney woke up the next day, he couldn’t stop thinking about the dream he’d had the night before. He’d been thinking about getting back together with Robin so much recently that he was bound to have something other than a nightmare eventually. He couldn’t decide which was worse: the nightmares of her rejecting him or the good dream that reminded him of what would never happen. He sighed and sat up. Then he heard her voice from the other side of the bed.

“Barney, it’s like seven in the morning. Why the hell are you up?”

Barney finally looked over to the other side of the bed. She was actually there, or he wanted to believe she was. 

“You’re actually here? I didn’t just make that up because I was lonely and hor-”

Robin reached over and hit him in the arm.

“Ow!”

“Now you know I’m really here, but you still haven’t told me why you’re up so early.”

 “Oh, right. This is usually when Ellie wakes up, and she usually jumps on me until I get up, too. It’s just habit and self-preservation now, I guess.”

 Robin scoffed at him.

 “Self-preservation?”

 “Getting jumped on by a ten year old at seven in the morning is not fun, Robin. She can’t jump on me if I’m already awake.”

 Robin laughed but suddenly, her face fell.

 “Hey Barney? How is this gonna work? You know, me, Ellie, and Number 31? How are we gonna explain this to them?”

 Barney just shrugged.

 “I don’t owe Number 31 an explanation, and I think this will actually be good for Ellie. Her mom and I don’t have a good relationship, but Ellie and I do. I don’t want her growing up thinking the way her mom and I interact is normal. I want her to have a relationship like ours when she’s older, not one like the one I have with Number 31.”

 “Well, you should probably stop calling her Number 31. That can’t be good for Ellie to hear you call her mom by a number.”

 “Wait, you don’t actually think I call her Number 31 in front of Ellie? Come on, Robin, I’m not stupid.”

 “So, you actually know her name?”

 “Well, yeah, it’s Mary. She’s actually dropping Ellie off later today, if you wanna meet them.”

 “Do you want me to?”

 “Ellie, definitely. Mary, I don’t really care. It’s up to you. It would be nice to have a buffer though. She has a death glare that rivals Lily’s.”

 “Come on Barney, nothing compares to Lily’s ‘You’re dead to me stare’.”

 “Fine, but it’s still not fun.”

 Robin laughed and rolled her eyes at him.

 “I’ll stay. Besides, I wanna meet your kid. I’m gonna tell her so many embarrassing stories about you.”

 “Oh, come on, Robin. Don’t make me look uncool in front of my kid.”

 “Are you kidding? That’s all I’m gonna do.”

 “You’re the worst.”

 “You love me.”

 Suddenly, Barney’s playfulness disappeared, replaced by loving sincerity.

 “I really do.”

 As Barney leaned in to kiss her, they were interrupted by a knock at the door. Barney groaned in annoyance.

 “Dammit, number 31!”

 “Come on, lover boy. Let’s get dressed and answer the door.”


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy hell, two chapters in one day. I'm feeling inspired right now, y'all. I hope you like it!

As Barney and Robin hurried to get dressed, there were several more knocks at the door. Barney groaned.

 “That woman has never known how to be patient.”

 They finished dressing and answered the door. Standing on the other side was an extremely short, blonde woman in a sundress and Ellie, who looked eerily similar to her mother aside from her beaming smile and bright, kind eyes. Barney looked at her with a fake smile that she returned.

 “Mary.”

 “Barney.”

 Before either of them could reply, Ellie jumped into Barney’s arms.

 “Daddy!”

 “Hey, Pumpkin. How are you?”

 “Good. Daddy who’s the lady next to you?”

 Mary’s head snapped from her daughter to Robin.

 “Oh, is this your newest _girlfriend_?” she asked with a sneer.

 Robin held out her left hand, purposefully displaying the ring.

 “Fiancee, actually,” she replied.

 “Oh, my God. Are you Robin?” Ellie squealed.

 “Yeah, I am.”

 “Daddy told me all about you. He even showed me the Robin Sparkles videos!”

 “Oh, did he?” Robin said with an evil smile.

 He’d pay for that later. Barney put his free hand up in surrender, knowing she was planning her revenge. Ellie giggled.

 “I knew you two would get back together! I knew it! You loved each other, and you still do! Didn’t I tell you Daddy?”

 “Yeah.”

 At the mention of love, a quick of look of hurt passed over Mary’s face, which was quickly replaced by a fake smile.

 “Well, I’m glad someone could make an honest man out of him. Congratulations, you two. I’ll be back on Thursday to pick her up, yeah?”

 Barney nodded.

 “Sounds good.”

 Mary had barely closed the door behind her before Ellie started asking Barney about the wedding.

 “Daddy, when’s the wedding? Can I be the flower girl? Do Aunt Lily and Uncle Marshall know yet? Does Uncle Ted? Will Robin’s dogs move in with us?”

 Ellie continued firing off questions as Barney attempted to answer them all. After she was done interrogating Barney, she went to her room to play with her toys. As they settled into the couch, exhausted by the questions, Robin realized they hadn’t told anyone else yet.

 “You know, we should probably call our family and friends and tell them this is happening.”

 “Oh, yeah. This is something most of them would like to know.”

 Robin laughed and pulled out her phone.

 “I’ll take care of Lily, Marshall, and Ted. You wanna start with your family?”

 “Sounds good.”

 Barney got up to go get his phone from the bedroom as Robin dialed Lily’s number.

 “Hey, Lily,” Robin said, smiling at Barney as he walked into the other room.

 “I have something to tell you.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Idk how I feel about this chapter, but it's necessary for y'know, plot and stuff. I hope y'all like it anyway!

Robin couldn’t have called at a worse time. Marshall and Lily were finally alone without their kids, and they were taking full advantage of that when the phone rang. Lily looked over at the phone.

 “It’s Robin.”

 “Babe, let it go to voicemail. We’re kinda in the middle of something.”

 “But what if it’s about her and Barney? I really wanna know.”

 “Me too, but not as badly as I wanna finish what we’re doing.”

 “Come on, Marshall. Please?”

 “Fine.”

 Lily picked up the phone.

 “Hello?”

 “Hey, Lily? I have something to tell you and Marshall. Is he with you?”

 “Yeah. Hold on, I’ll put you on speaker.”

 Hey, Robin.”

 “Hey, Marshall. Wait, why do you sound like you’ve been exercising? Oh God, were you two just having sex?”

 “Yeah,” Marshall replied.

 Before Robin could hang up, Lily piped up.

 “It’s fine, Robin. We’ll finish later. Tell us the news!”

 “Sometimes, you two are a little too open about your sex life.”

 “Just tell us the news Robin!” Lily exclaimed.

 “Barney and I are getting remarried! We don’t have anything planned yet, but it’s definitely happening.”

 Lily squealed with excitement.

 “Oh, my God, Robin! Tell us everything that happened!”

 “I’ll tell you later. I’ll let you two finish what you were doing.”

 “Thank you!” Marshall exclaimed as Lily lightly smacked him on the shoulder.

 “Oh, and, uh, congrats.”

 Robin laughed. Marshall definitely had a one-track mind when it came to sex.

 “Thanks, Marshall. Now, I just gotta tell Ted.”

 “He’s coming over later, do you want us to tell him?” Lily asked.

 “No, I should do this myself. Thanks, though. Well, I’ll let you two get back to it. Bye!” 

 As Lily and Marshall said goodbye and went back to what they were doing, she thought about how to tell Ted. She knew this wouldn’t be a fun conversation. She briefly considered telling him in person but decided against it. She didn’t want him to feel like he had to pretend to be happy for them, and this way, it would be easier for him to be upset without worrying about hurting her feelings. As she dialed Ted’s number, she took comfort in the fact that he’d see Lily and Marshall later. At least they’d be able to comfort him. As the phone rang, she partially hoped that he wouldn’t answer. Just when she thought it was about to go to voicemail, Ted picked up.

 “Hey, Robin. What’s up?”

 “Hey, Ted. Listen, I have something to tell you.”


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter and the next one are Ted-centric, and I hope y'all like angst and sadness because there's a lot in this chapter (it's gonna be even worse next chapter, though). Anyway, I hope y'all like it!

Ted was on the subway when Robin called. He looked at his phone, deciding whether or not he wanted to answer. He had a feeling that this was about her and Barney, and he also knew she wouldn’t be calling this soon if it wasn’t big. Ted took a deep breath. He was going to have to talk to her eventually, and if he talked to her now, he wouldn’t have to wonder and worry about what she was going to say. He answered the phone.

 “Hey, Robin. What’s up?”

 “Hey, Ted. I have something to tell you.”

 “Is it about you and Barney?”

 “Yeah.”

 Robin hesitated. She had no idea how Ted was going to react, but he needed to know. He was still one of her closest friends. She forced herself to spit out the words.

 “We’re getting re-married. We don’t have anything planned, but it’s happening.”

 Ted lapsed into a shocked silence. He had expected them to get back together, but this? He hadn’t expected them to immediately jump to marriage. He had no idea what to say.

 “Ted?”

 He realized Robin was waiting for him to respond and said the first thing that came to his mind.

 “Oh, wow. So marriage, huh? Kinda soon, isn’t it? Kidding! Congratulations. I’m really happy for you guys, really.”

 “Ted, it’s okay. You don’t have to pretend like this is easy for you.”

 “I’m not pretending! Really. I think it’s cool you two are getting back together. Well, I’m almost to Lily and Marshall’s, so can we talk later?”

 “Yeah. I’d give them a few minutes, though. They were...occupied when I called, and that wasn’t too long ago.”

 “Duly noted. Bye, Robin.”

 “Bye, Ted.”

 As Robin hung up, Ted checked what stop they were at. He still had several more until he needed to get off. He felt bad lying to Robin, but he couldn’t hear about their wedding right now. There were just too many feelings it brought up, some of Robin and some surprisingly of Tracy. He hadn’t thought about his own wedding in years, but hearing about Robin’s brought up memories he didn’t want to think about. God, he tried so hard to not think about his and Tracy’s relationship. It just hurt so much. Even when he was telling the story of how they met to his kids, he tried to avoid talking about her more than necessary. When they thought he had feelings for Robin, he jumped at chance. Maybe he had finally moved on, and maybe Robin had, too. They were both wrong. They were both still hopelessly in love with the ones that had got away. The biggest difference was that Robin still had a chance with her love. Ted didn’t. Tracy was gone forever, and pretending he wasn’t still in love with her was only making the pain worse. He hadn’t moved on. Moving on would be the final step in admitting she was really gone, and he hadn’t been ready to move on. Now, he felt like me might be, or at least ready enough to confront the emotions he’d been hiding from. As the subway got closer to his stop, he thought about all the memories with Tracy he’d tried not to think about. Birthdays, anniversaries, holidays, the wedding, the sex, watching her paint or make breakfast, and even the bad memories like the fights, comforting her when she was upset...when she was sick. Her funeral. Those were the ones Ted really tried to avoid. The memories towards the end. He hatred those, but maybe it was time to face them. Ted thought about the best way to deal with his feelings until it was time to get off the subway. After getting off, he walked to Lily and Marshall’s apartment. He let himself in and found Lily and Marshall waiting for him on the couch. Marshall was the first one to say anything.

 “Hey, buddy. How are you doing?”

 “I’m fine, Marshall.”

 Before Marshall could reply, Lily interjected.

 “Oh, come on, Ted. That obvious lie doesn’t even warrant the ‘Where’s the poop?’ question.”

 “Okay, fine. I’m not fine but not for the reasons you probably think.”

 “Well, then what is the reason?” Marshall asked.

 “I’m not ready to talk about it. And I know that this is last minute, but could you two watch the kids for a few days, maybe a week? No questions asked?”

 Lily was clearly about to ask questions, but Marshall answered before she could. From the look on Ted’s face he knew what, or more accurately who, this was about. 

 “Sure, Ted. Whatever you need.”

 “Thanks, Marshall.”

 “Of course, Ted. Whatever you need. And when you’re ready to talk, we’re here for you.”

Lily nodded in agreement.

 “Yeah, Ted. You can always come to us.”

 “Thanks, guys. You’re the best.”

 Now that the difficult things were out of the way, Ted sat on the couch next to his friends. He knew that no matter what happened, he would always have Lily and Marshall. As they hung out, Ted realized how lucky he was to have such amazing friends.


End file.
